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Today’s guest is Gay Gaddis, Founder of T3.

Gay started T3 using $16,000 taken out of her IRA during a downturn in the economy. It was a big risk, but thirty years later, it’s one that has paid off several-fold. Today, T3 is helping clients build useful brands that reach consumers around the world.

Key Discussion Points:

• How Gay started T3 with $16,000 taken from an IRA account.
• T3’s alternative solution-based approach to traditional and post-internet marketing.
• Online marketing strategies T3 did with Dell in the 1990s and the ease of finding funding.
• An early online presence T3 had which gave them many clients as they moved online.
• Gay’s art background and how it helped her keep things exciting at T3 and attract creatives.
• The success T3 had with showing clients ambitious, unexpected offerings in presentations.
• Unique tactics T3 used such as a Dell VR game and parking tickets that were drink tokens.
• Product placement, branded content, personal brands, and the future of marketing.
• Low points at T3: tough decisions to stay lean, avoiding merges during recessions.
• Personal money Gay invested back into T3 to get legal help and brilliant people.
• The value of good structures and how T3 had great procurement, MSA, and lawyers.
• Relationships between audience attention, new media forms, and marketing mediums.
• The way to make money: knowing how your company and clients make money too.
• How doing real business inevitably involves making a few people upset.
• Boundaries between work and life, and the interconnectedness of them for Gay.
• Gay’s return to her love of painting and her oncoming focus to empower young girls.
• Advice from Gay: prepare yourself for future problems by being in a position of power.

Mentions:

• Gay Gaddis
• Gay Gaddis on LinkedIn
• T3
• Michael Dell
• Sex and the City
• Motorola
• IBM
• Texas Business Leadership Council
• The University of Texas
• The Salvation Army
• Cowgirl Power

This episode of Mission Daily is brought to you by our friends at TriNet. TriNet makes HR easier, from payroll to benefits to compliance. AND they offer full-service solutions tailored to your industry and your company, whether your team is 10 people or 1,000. Check out TriNet today at trinet.com.